Sunday, 17 November 2013

NCR Curried red lentil and apricot soup

I bought the first fresh apricots of the season last week. They were gorgeous. I took them to a friend's place. I shared them with my mum. Sylvia and I gobbled them down. They are a rare treat. Thank goodness for dried apricots so we can enjoy the amazing flavours of apricots all year round. They are so good in so many recipes, both savoury and sweet.

When I saw that Lisa was calling for vegetarian soups or salads that other bloggers have made, for the monthly No Croutons Required blog event that she hosts with Jacqueline, it was a tyranny of choice. I have an overwhelming amount of bookmarks. So many that I probably could cook three a day and never get through them.

It was time to make that soup with dried apricots. I chose one by Janet at the taste space
who is constantly posting interesting recipes. I made some changes. A
little less ginger, a little more tomato, rather more salt. Yet it was still a thick
satisfying lentil soup with a complex sweetness from the dried
apricots. Wonderful. More please!

Heat oil over low heat in a large saucepan. Fry onion for about 10 minutes or until golden brown. Stir in garlic and ginger for a minute. Stir in curry for another minute. Add water, red lentils, passata, dried apricots and salt. Simmer for about 30 minutes or until lentils are cooked. Add coconut milk and roughly blend - a little texture is nice. Serves warm garnished with coriander.

19 comments:

What a delicious idea. I've never thought of adding apricots to a soup or dal recipe before, but I supose indian often adds mango chutney etc. Would love to try this, could do with a bowl now, its cold and wet here!

Oh how lucky you were to have a taste of the first apricots of the season, Johanna. Precious indeed...

This lentil soup recipe is simply amazing. Never, would I think to add dried apricots. What a sweet idea! I'm sure it is/was a hit wherever it was enjoyed. I'll definitely be "bookmarking" this one. Better yet, I'm off to Pin it!

I can not wait for my first apricot of the season. As a child, they were my favourite fruit and whilst I now have a few contenders for that category (plums and mangoes and nectarines as well as apricots) I still adore them. They are still too pricey to justify here but this soup looks like just the thing to use the dried sort for! Yum.

Thanks Kari - so many apricots are disappointing these days - hope you have a good source - makes a huge difference - I still remember eating them fresh off my grandmother's tree and they were amazing - which is why it is hard to match my childhood memory of apricots. thank goodness for dried apricots

Lovely! I too have many many bookmarked recipes. As it turns out, my contribution to NCR this month is also inspired by one of Janet's recipes. Thanks for joining in this month. I always admire your culinary creations.

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Recipes and reflections in which our vegetarian heroine dreams of being tall and graceful as a giraffe; being a goddess in the kitchen; and being gladdened by green gadgets, green food and green politics because green is the colour of hope. See About Me for more info.